Cardigan Mountain School

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
020223580
IRS 990 coverage
2010–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Canaan, NH, USA
Phone
6035234321
Rating
77
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Primary, Elementary Schools

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$37,051,583
Expenses
$24,735,318
Assets
$97,431,940
Liabilities
$13,406,592

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

39 people listed

Highest reported compensation

  • CHRISTOPHER DAY (HEAD OF SCHOOL): $481,042 total reported compensation
  • JOTHAM BURNETT (DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT): $187,964 total reported compensation
  • MICHAEL O'BRIEN (CFO): $181,717 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

To offer a close-knit community that prepares middle school boys in mind, body, and spirit for responsible and meaningful lives in a global society.

What it reported doing in 2024

A summer session for boys and girls in grades three through nine offering recreational and educational experiences. In addition, the cardigan mountain school offers the core program that seeks to instill in boys and girls a lifelong passion for the outdoors while developing the necessary skills to fully pursue this passion for a lifetime.

Operating model

Revenue model
Earned-program. 66% of the money available for current operations came from fees and other program revenue.
Distribution model
Hybrid. The nonprofit split its reported program spending across 77% for direct work, and 23% for grants.
  • Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - The filed numbers largely add up and most voting board members are independent. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 56
  • Transparency & Controls: 91
  • Accountability: 94
  • Sustainability: 79
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 54.5%; rating input score 54
  • Program expense ratio: 70.6%; rating input score 71
  • Fundraising efficiency: $5.67 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 23; 23rd percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 5 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 83
    • Compensation committee: Pass
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Pass
    • Written employment contract: Pass
    • Compensation survey or study: Pass
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 72nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 96.9%; rating input score 97; 31st percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 8 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 89
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: Pass
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Fail
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 33.2%; rating input score 89; 89th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 3.94; rating input score 81; 81st percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.14; rating input score 67; 67th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 6.1%; rating input score 42; 42nd percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 4% per year; rating input score 100; 34th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 3.6% per year; rating input score 100; 31st percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 5.4% per year; rating input score 100; 38th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 54.5% of revenue deployed · 70.6% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 31 of 32 board members independent · 8 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 2 filed program accomplishments · $17.5M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $481K · 39 people listed · 5 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 4 contractors listed · $2.3M reported
  • Consistency: 38 of 38 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 10 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 15 filing years from 2010 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 7 filed money-flow records
  • Grant readiness: Federal tax and exclusion status, award history, and grant-maker relationships.
  • People: Everyone the filings name, and which of them the filings identify by more than a name.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • Review — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 54/100.
  • High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 23/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Form 990 shared with the board not reported.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 42/100.